


Morning Free

by LauraRoslin



Category: Star Trek: Voyager
Genre: Borg - Freeform, Drabble, The Borg, episode: The collective, the collective - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-06-05
Updated: 2015-06-11
Packaged: 2018-04-02 23:37:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,356
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4078195
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LauraRoslin/pseuds/LauraRoslin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Remember the winning pot from the season six episode, "The Collective?" Well, here's how Captain Janeway reacted when Tom asked to be let out of the duty shift when they returned.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Just a random thought I had while re-watching this episode. A short little drabble. Enjoy!

Tom hesitated for a brief moment before he tapped the console by the Captain’s ready room doors, fiddling with his hands while he waited for them to open. When he heard the telltale hiss, he looked up and walked inside, returning his Captain’s welcoming smile. She was hunched over her desk, a handful of padds scattered in front of her. 

“What can I do for you, Ensign?” She leaned back in her chair and looked him over, a momentary look of concern flashing across her features before it faded into a merely curious facade. 

“I had a question actually, Captain. Only if you have a minute.” He took a deep breath and watched as she laughed quietly and stood up. 

“Anything to get me away from those reports.” He followed her over to the seats by the viewport, sitting down only after she gestured at the chair beside her. She laughed again and he rested his elbows on his knees.

“You see,” he paused and laughed a little as well. This was all Harry’s idea. Tom had gone to Chakotay first, but the first officer refused to do anything except direct him to ask their Captain. “When Harry, Neelix, Chakotay and I were on that away mission… we played a little poker.” He stopped to watch her reaction, relieved when only her eyebrow shot up. “To make things interesting, we bet that whoever won the round would be given the next morning off….”

“Let me guess. You won the round, but do to your encounter with the Borg, you never got your morning off hm?” She wanted to smile or smirk or react in any way, but sometimes she just liked to watch her senior crew members squirm. Tom especially. 

“Um, yes ma’am. I just thought…. seeing as Chakotay agreed and…” He was stopped by the sound of laughter and was surprised to see it was coming from the woman beside him.

“Oh, Tom! Chakotay told me all about your poker games. It sounds like you won that morning off fair and square.” She turned to look at him, a small smile tugging at her lips. “Would you like this morning off, or were you hoping for another day?”

“Since B’Elanna is on the night shift tonight, I was hoping for this morning off. If that’s okay, Captain.” She stood up again and folded her hands behind her back while she gazed out at the stars and planets whizzing by, silent for a few moments.

“Of course, Tom. Enjoy your morning off and we’ll see you back on the Bridge at 1300 hours.” She glanced down at him and she smiled more, nodding her head. “Did you have any further distractions for me?” Tom shook his head and she sighed. “Then back to the paperwork, it is. Dismissed.” 

She heard the doors open and then click shut as Tom left before she sank behind her desk again, a lingering smile resting on her lips. Outside, Tom smirked at Chakotay and Harry on the Bridge as he walked by to the turbolift.

“Enjoy the morning shift, boys. Maybe the next time you’ll have a better hand. Try to keep the spatial disturbances to a minimum, yeah?” He grinned as he walked into the ‘lift, still grinning even after the doors shut. “Mess Hall!”


	2. Challenge Accepted

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What happens when the captain gets invited to one of these notorious poker games?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was talking to a friend and we were hypothesizing how out of control a game could get when competitive Janeway gets involved. This was the result. I may do one more chapter, but I'm not sure.

Kathryn glanced across the table at her first officer and couldn’t help but grin, her wine glass grasped loosely in her hand. She shook her head and settled back in her chair, one leg crossed over the other beneath her red dress.

“You’re inviting me to play poker, Chakotay?” Her eyebrow shot up and she took a sip from the red wine, grateful they somehow still had some left over after six years. 

“Of course, Kathryn. I’ve heard you’re a devious player and I’d like to see how you fare again Tom. So far, he’s been unbeatable!” She shook her head and laughed, leaning forward.

“Oh, I see. You just want me to beat him for you.” He grinned back and nodded, setting his empty wine glass on the table.

“Yes, thank you!” Kathryn finished off her wine and set the glass down as well. 

“I suppose I’d be a terrible captain if I didn’t come to the aid of my first officer,” she drawled. “When’s the next game?”

“Tonight, actually. If you’re interested.”

“You set me up!” Chakotay laughed and nodded slightly. 

“Maybe a little,” he admitted, shrugging. “I knew if you thought about it for too long, you’d end up changing your mind.”

“I don’t back away from a challenge, Chakotay, and this definitely sounds like a challenge.” She stood up and grabbed some of the dishes from the table. “Is this a uniform and rank arrangement, or something more casual?”

“Definitely casual, though good luck getting Harry to call you Kathryn.” She threw a glance over her shoulder at him while she recycled the dishes.

“Oh, no. Ma’am will do just fine,” she laughed.

Once the dishes were recycled and everything else cleaned up, Chakotay escorted his friend to holodeck one where Tom was running the Sandrines program. The doors slid open and the command team entered to find members of the crew mingling and laughing. A pool game went on undisturbed in the center of the room, but it was the poker table near the bar that caught Kathryn’s attention. She shot a grin at her first officer and led him over to it, sinking into a seat next to Tom. He looked at her in surprise and then cleared his throat.

“Captain… We’re surprised to see you here. We didn’t…” Kathryn shook her head and held up her hand.

“Firstly, it’s Kathryn for tonight. Unless you call Chakotay “commander,” you won’t call me “captain.”” She smiled and looked around the table. Harry was in the process of dealing out chips. 

“Who’s buying the first round?” Chakotay grinned as he took his seat by Kathryn and gestured to Tom and Harry’s lack of drinks. 

“Loser of the first round?” Tom suggested, looking at the other three players. Harry nodded absently while he distributed the chips, but both Kathryn and Chakotay nodded their assent. “Well, then. Let’s get started!

Harry finished with the chips and Tom dealt out cards. Kathryn leaned back in her seat as she looked at them, her face quickly falling blank. Two Queens. Decent enough. She set them on the table and looked around as Chakotay placed his bet. Kathryn called, followed by Tom who raised. The rest of the round moved quickly until all the cards had been flipped. Harry revealed two tens, Chakotay had nothing, Kathryn had her Queens, and Tom pulled off a straight. She shook her head and laughed as Tom gathered his winnings and Harry took their drink orders.

The next few rounds passed quickly, chips quickly gathering on Tom and Kathryn’s side and leaving Chakotay and Harry’s side looking a little barren. Two rounds of drinks had both been purchased by Harry and everyone had slowly relaxed around each other, but grew more competitive about the game. Tom looked like he had a thought and Kathryn was minority concerned.

“I was thinking we could make this a little interesting,” he began and Chakotay groaned as he finished off his beer. “What do you say we start betting with rations?”

“As long as you realize what I’m like without my coffee, Tom, I’m game.” She grinned and he looked a little terrified for a moment, but then he returned her grin.

“Looks like you might want to win these next rounds then, Kathryn!” He eyed her pile of chips which was slightly smaller than his own. 

Chakotay stepped up and purchased the next round to get everyone started, the energy rising with the new stakes. Kathryn easily won the first round, laughing as Harry worried about having to eat Neelix’s food for a week due to his losses. She took pity on him and lost a few rations to him which he accepted graciously and offered to spare a few for coffee if she lost. 

As the ration piles were starting to rival the piles of chips, Chakotay looked thoughtful and shot a glance to the woman by his side. She raised an eyebrow; this time it was her who looked concerned by her first officer’s thoughtful expression. 

“What is it, Chakotay?” she asked, vaguely concerned about his response.

“Well, we seem to have grown bored of trading rations. You and Harry keep taking pity on each other; you might as well just split the pot.” Harry blushed a little and Kathryn rolled her eyes. “So, why don’t we up the ante a lot more.” Tom leaned forward against the table and nudged his beer out of the way.

“What do you have in mind?”

“Oh, maybe a little shift swapping.” Kathryn huffed at the anticlimactic answer and settled back in her seat.

“Oh, damn. I might have to work the Gamma shift tomorrow,” she drawled sarcastically, shooting him a cheeky grin. Chakotay only raised an eyebrow.

“Did I say shift? I meant rank.” Her sarcasm and grin dropped immediately and he laughed loudly.

“Chakotay! We… God, no. What would Starfleet—“ Chakotay raised his hand and cut her off, shaking his head slowly.

“No, Kathryn. If you’re going to ask that question about swapping rank for a day, you should ask what Starfleet would say about the practical jokes and the poker games and everything else.” His voice was teasing, but she could tell from his eyes that he was serious. Tom and Harry apparently didn’t see it and laughed, shrugging a bit.

“What do I have to lose, Chakotay? I’m already an Ensign,” Tom fiddled with a chip, twirling it around on the table.

“Same here! It seems it’s the two of you who stand to lose the most. Can you handle being an Ensign again, Ca-Kathryn?”

Put on the spot, Kathryn blushed a bit and cleared her throat as she shifted in her chair. She contemplated it for a moment, glancing at the men that surrounded her. If one of them were a captain for a day… She’d still be on the ship if anything went wrong. They were all Bridge officers anyway and Harry was in charge of the night shift.

“Alright, alright! Let’s make things interesting, but I need another drink before we start. Otherwise I won’t be able to handle you three. Anyone need anything else?” She returned a few minutes later with three beers, handing one to Tom and Chakotay as she settled into her seat and took a large drink of hers. “Let’s get started then. Chakotay, what are our rules for this round?”

“Highest bet is your rank for the day. Winner takes the highest rank in the pot. If Kathryn or I lose, we’ll become Ensigns. If Tom or Harry loses, you’ll scrub plasma manifolds for a day. Each rank is worth the same, bet-wise.” He glanced at the three of them as they all nodded their agreement. “Let’s begin. Harry, if you’ll deal.” 

“Is it too late to promote both of you to Commander?” she teased, glancing between Tom and Harry who both grinned and shrugged.

“I don’t know, is it?” Harry laughed and finished shuffling their deck.

He dealt out two cards and Kathryn nearly groaned when she saw her hand. A damn four and an eight. Different suits and unlikely to give her a straight. She remained focused, though, determined that if she didn’t have a winning hand, she could at least bluff it. 

“Six rations,” Chakotay declared, tossing in the dedicated chips before looking to Kathryn. 

She glanced at her cards again and nodded slightly before calling his bet and passing it to Tom. Both Ensigns called as well and Harry flipped over the first three cards. A King, a Jack, and a ten. No help to her. She restrained a sigh as Chakotay upped the bet even further. 

“I bet my rank, commander.” He glanced around the table and then shrugged as he put his cards down to place three black chips in the pot. He placed the three circles among the chips and turned his gaze to Kathryn. 

“In that case….” She trailed off and quickly added four black chips, piling them next to Chakotay’s. She glanced up in time to see Harry and Tom grin.

“I’ve got nothing and I’m not risking the plasma manifolds,” Tom huffed, handing his cards over to Harry as a fold. Harry’s eyes widened a bit in nervousness as he eyed the seven chips on the table.

“It’s not worth it, guys. I think I’m suddenly happy being an Ensign.” He laughed and folded as well before he leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms.

“Just you and I, then,” Chakotay hummed and watched as Harry flipped over the next card. 

An eight. Well, at least Kathryn had a pair now. It was better than nothing. The flop still made her a bit nervous. She looked to Chakotay and watched him while he analyzed the new card, her hands resting on her cards.

“I suppose there’s nothing more we can bet at this point. Check.” He glanced at his cards one more and then took a few drinks from his beer. 

“Check,” she mimicked, taking a drink as well and grateful she had the beer to cover her mouth when the last card turned over to be a four. Ha, two pair! Maybe she had a chance at maintaining her captaincy. 

“Check,” Chakotay repeated, his fingers tapping the table. 

“Oh, you’re no fun,” she hummed, shaking her head a little. “Check. Let’s see what you have, Ensign.” She emphasized the last word and shot him a teasing grin.

“Don’t get too ahead of yourself. We’re both Crewmen right now.” He gestured to their empty collars—even if they were out of uniform— and she nodded her concession. They were on an equal playing ground.

He flipped his cards over and she rolled her eyes at the Queen and nine. As worthless as her cards. She heard Tom and Harry laughing and whooping and her gaze wandered to the five cards on the table. Nine…. Ten… Jack… Queen… King. He had a damn straight. Which beat her two pair, Kathryn realized as she overturned her cards and groaned loudly.

“Congratulations, Captain Chakotay!” Tom laughed and leaned over to clap the man on his shoulder. Chakotay grinned and nudged Kathryn’s shoulder.

“Don’t worry, Ensign, I’ll give you an easy job for your first day,” he teased. She shot him a grinned and nudged him back.

“We’ll see about that, Captain. My collar is going to feel awfully empty tomorrow.”

“Mine is going to be oddly full tomorrow.” Chakotay grinned and pushed one black chip toward Kathryn. He counted out four for himself and placed them in front of his chips, leaving two remaining. “What about granting two Ensigns a temporary promotion to Lieutenant?” Kathryn could tell a part of Chakotay was sincerely asking and a part of him was teasing. She followed his gaze to the remaining chips and shrugged. 

“That’s for the captain to decide.” Chakotay shrugged and pushed one to Tom and one to Harry. “I can’t believe you two hold a higher rank than me,” she sighed, shaking her head slightly.

“Don’t fret, Captain. It was bound to happen eventually,” Tom teased, nudging her gently. She rolled her eyes and laughed.

“You’re just referring to the fact that there’s no higher position in the Delta Quadrant. I might have to make my own rank! What about…. Admiral of the Delta Quadrant?” Chakotay laughed and shook his head.

“No, that sounds like a rank only a captain can bestow. And definitely not to an Ensign.” Kathryn shot him a halfhearted glare and leaned back in her chair. They finally became aware of how empty Sandrines had been, but no one could be bothered to figure out what time it was.

“Then what’s my assignment, Captain?” 

“Bridge, of course,” Chakotay answered, shrugging as he pushed his chips to the center. “Maybe training for first officer. After all, who else would I use?” Kathryn hummed, mostly pleased with his answer.

“Or, even better. You can fetch my tea.” She huffed and tossed a chip at him which he caught between his fingers. “Oh, your one black chip? Does that mean you’re resigning?” This caused an uproar from Tom and Harry who collapsed against the table in laughter. Kathryn eventually gave in as well and soon they were all panting from their laughter.

Harry was the first to yawn and the others quickly followed. With a quick order, the chips flashed out of existence and the four people quickly finished off their drinks. They had sobered a bit from their game, but there was still an air of energy regarding the three promotions and one demotion.

“I should probably head out,” Harry yawned again and ran his fingers through his hair. “I’ll see you on the Bridge at 0600, Captain.”

“See you then, Harry.” Kathryn responded automatically, smiling at the young man.

“I believe he meant me, Ensign.” Chakotay interrupted her thoughts, smiling gently. She rolled her eyes.

“Of course, Captain,” she huffed. 

They waved as Harry wandered out of the holodeck, Tom soon following. Kathryn and Chakotay remained for a few more minutes, stealing the moments alone to kiss slowly and sweetly, the taste of synthehol strong on their lips. As they rose to leave, hands clasped together, Kathryn smiled.

“The crew is going to be confused tomorrow,” she hummed, glancing at him.

“I bet Tuvok will question why I’m in your seat.”

“Will you bet your new rank, Captain?”

“Not at all, Ensign.”

Kathryn elbowed his side and they continued to their quarters, the dim lights allowing them to walk closely together with their hands still intertwined.


	3. Payday

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kathryn Janeway's day as an Ensign.

Kathryn automatically attached four pips to her color the following morning. She stood in front of her mirror and adjusted her collar before the reality of her day ahead hit her. Sighing, she removed three of the pips and slipped them back into the box on her dresser. Tomorrow—tomorrow she’d get her pips back. She shook her head and a small smile appeared. She had lost that poker game fair and square to her damn first officer.. She let out a breath and adjusted her uniform one more time before she left her quarters, striding purposefully toward the turbolift at the end of the hall. The few crewmen she passed didn’t say a word and her ride to the Bridge was peaceful.

The Bridge was already a whirl of action when she stepped off the ‘lift and looked around, immediately spotting Tuvok’s arched eyebrows to her right. She shrugged and he looked like he didn’t know what to say. Kathryn decided she would let Chakotay explain—Captain’s prerogative. She noticed him next, standing between their chairs with his arms folded across his chest. 

“Captain—“ Tuvok began, looking between Chakotay and Kathryn.

“We have a slight change of plans for today,” the tattooed man began, easily silencing the noise of the Bridge. Even Harry and Tom—the Lieutenants for a day—shut up. “Due to a friendly game of poker last night, a few of us have had a rank change.” He laughed goodheartedly and turned around to face Kathryn, shooting her a small wink. She was positive Tuvok saw as well.

“I’d like to introduce, for today only, Lieutenants Kim and Paris, Ensign Janeway, and Captain Chakotay.” He grinned and gestured to each of them in turn. Kathryn couldn’t help but flush a bit at the shocked gasps that followed her announced rank. “That’s the announcements! Back to your stations.”

Kathryn remained in front of the turbolift between Tactical and Ops, unsure of where her place was at this point. Would Chakotay really put her in the first officer’s seat? His gaze met hers and she flushed even more, the additional blood in her cheeks noticeable by now.

“Ensign?” Kathryn arched an eyebrow and adjusted her stance. She couldn’t help it when her hands found her way to her hips and she stared her _Captain_ down. “Report to B’Elanna in Engineering. She requires your assistance.” She wasn’t to be on the Bridge then. A change of scenery would be nice. 

“Aye, sir,” she hummed, grinning as she turned and made her way down to B’Elanna. 

Over the first few hours, Kathryn found herself tossed from section to section. She helped B’Elanna with a diagnostic of the Warp Core, spent far too long with the Doctor, and finally returned to the Bridge, feeling far more exhausted than she usually did halfway through her duty shift. The Bridge was quiet this time and Chakotay was at ease in her seat, the chair beside him empty. She cleared her throat as she walked up to the railing, her eyes scanning the viewscreen. She didn’t like knowing what was going on with her ship, but she trusted Chakotay. 

“Ensign Janeway,” she cringed at the name and shook her head a little. She hadn’t been an Ensign in so long; the title sounded weird to her ears. It took her a moment to realize the words hadn’t come from Chakotay, but rather from Tom Paris. “Ensign, the captain informs me that this next section of space could get a little tricky and needs me to navigate it. Fetch me some water before it gets too bad?” 

Kathryn’s eyebrows shot up into her hairline and she stared at the pilot, her jaw slackened a little. That little _bastard!_ She wasn’t sure if she was referring to Chakotay or Tom because she knew they were both in on this and damn them both! She realized every Bridge officer was staring at her and she was glaring at her damn pilot and no one had said a word. Kathryn clenched her hands, willing herself to go along with this. Just a handful of hours and she’d get her pips back and make Tom pay for this.

“Aye, Lieutenant. One glass of water coming up.” She glanced at Chakotay who was watching the exchange with a slight smile. “May I see you in your ready room, Captain?”

“Of course.” Chakotay rose and led the way into her ready room, the door shutting quietly behind her. He turned around to face her and his small smile widened into a full on grin. “I thought you were going to deck him,” he grinned. She rolled her eyes.

“I have more self control than that. However, he may be spending the next two weeks scrubbing the plasma manifolds. Only if the Captain agrees, however?” She raised her eyebrows at him and he stepped closer, resting a hand on her hip.

“Oh, I agree completely, Ensign. Kathryn.” He leaned down and pressed their lips together gently, his grin fading to a small smile. “I missed being able to do that this morning.”

Kathryn kissed him back and hummed, her hand resting against this chest and feeling his heart beat through his uniform. She was grateful for the privacy of their ready room, a chance to be together without their prying crew watching them.

“I should get Tom his water,” she mumbled, pushing him away. “Besides, I know you’re in on that whole thing. I hope you’ll enjoy cleaning the manifolds with Tom.” As she spoke, she crossed the room and ordered a water from the replicator. She didn’t wait for a response before she returned to the Bridge, silently offering the water to Tom at the conn.

“Ensign, take your seat. We still have two hours left of our shift.” Chakotay had followed her out and she obediently took the first officer’s seat, crossing her legs as she leaned back into it. It certainly wasn’t as comfortable as hers was. She wondered how Chakotay could stand it. 

Kathryn was grateful the day had been quiet as she snuck into her quarters, quickly prying off her jacket. In the last ten minutes of their shift, gremlins had gone after the environmental systems. They seemed to only be interested in the temperature and nothing fatal had happened yet. B’Elanna had assured Chakotay that it was under control and she would summon him if needed. Meanwhile, parts of the ship were boiling and others were freezings. Kathryn’s quarters happened to be unbearably hot. She had barely gotten down to her long sleeved shirt when her door chimed. She glanced at her jacket and decided that if she was still and Ensign for a few hours, she could answer the door without a full uniform.

“Come in.” The door opened to reveal Chakotay who grinned at her. She shook her head and waited until the door shut before she tugged her long sleeves off and wiped at her sweaty arms. “Spirits, it’s hot in here.” Kathryn huffed loudly.

“Fantastic observation, Captain. Mind doing something about it?” Kathryn raised an eyebrow and walked to her replicator, calling for two cups of water. It was just too hot for coffee.

“B’Elanna’s doing everything she can. Meanwhile, we’re off duty.” Chakotay raised an eyebrow and Kathryn shook her head.

“Too hot. Don’t even think about it.” Chakotay crossed his arms and shrugged. 

“Fine, fine. What about the holodeck? We could go somewhere freezing.” Kathryn wiped at her brow and let out a short breath. 

“Holodeck?” She suddenly grinned and glanced at her abandoned uniform. “I’ve got an idea. Sandrines, pool. I win, you can spend the day in Sick Bay with the Doctor. You win, I’ll do whatever you want for a day.” They both knew Chakotay didn’t have a chance at beating her. She was too good at pool. But he couldn’t turn down the challenge. 

“You’re on.” He grinned and offered her his arm. Kathryn hesitated a moment and decided it was too hot to consider dressing again. She grabbed her combadge off her jacket and attached it to her tank top. 

With another grin, Chakotay led his Ensign from the Captain’s quarters, full prepared to get his ass beat.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, there you go. I probably should have stuck with writing smut-- a terrible mood is better for writing smut than fluff. I might rewrite this later.


End file.
